Blog Rank Tools

This is my rifle. There are many like it, but this one is mine. It is my life. I must master it as I must master my life. Without me my rifle is useless. Without my rifle, I am useless. I must fire my rifle true. I must shoot straighter than the enemy who is trying to kill me. I must shoot him before he shoots me. I will. My rifle and I know that what counts in war is not the rounds we fire, the noise of our burst, or the smoke we make. We know that it is the hits that count. We will hit. My rifle is human, even as I am human, because it is my life. Thus, I will learn it as a brother. I will learn its weaknesses, its strengths, its parts, its accessories, its sights and its barrel. I will keep my rifle clean and ready, even as I am clean and ready. We will become part of each other. Before God I swear this creed. My rifle and I are the defenders of my country. We are the masters of our enemy. We are the saviors of my life. So be it, until victory is America's and there is no enemy. - Marine Corps Rifleman's Creed.

Anybody who spends time writing is, at one time or another, vexed by the lack of a gender-neutral (should read sex-neutral) pronoun in the English language. Attempts have been made to overcome this problem either by avoiding indefinite pronouns, or by the use of his or her or his/her. Both of these fixes have drawbacks. Their was considered singular until the 18th century but has yet to make a resurgence, despite its pedigree. Because pronouns, in English, belong to a closed word class it has been very difficult to add any neologisms. Thus, we are without a workable resolution.

Yo was tuckin’ in his shirt!
Yo threw a thumbtack at me. Yo been runnin’ the halls.
Yo put his foot up.
Yo wearin’ a jacket. A coat!
You acting like I said what yo said.
She ain’t really go with yo.
Yo look like a sack ass gump.

It appears it will be necessary to begin updating the laws of our land. For example, 47 U.S.C. § 223, Obscene or harassing telephone calls in the District of Columbia, will now read:

[…] Baltimore, we get the new third-person singular pronoun yo. As in &quotYo handin’ out papers.&quothttps://dreadnaught.wordpress.com/2008/01/08/yo-the-new-gender-neutral-pronoun/PRONOUNSPronouns. Introduction. Give the Possessive Pronoun and Reflexive Pronoun for each of these […]

The views expressed on this blog are offered in the contributors' personal capacity. They do not purport to be speaking for, and their views should not be imputed to, any other organization, agency, or entity.